Ricina, digital search at the Riccia agricultural institute

The Larino prosecutor's office has ordered a digital search of the Riccia Agricultural Institute, in the province of Campobasso, for Tuesday, October 13. The Mobile Squad and the Central Operational Service of the Police will have to check over 70 electronic devices present in the school to verify if any of those computers were used to search for ricin, the poison that killed Antonella Di Ielsi and her daughter Sara Di Vita last December.

Investigators will look for traces of web or dark web browsing concerning the toxin, its methods of preparation or purchase. The search warrant references flagged terms such as 'poison', 'ricin', 'castor beans', 'deep web', and 'dark web'. Attention is also focused on the possible deletion of such searches.

The institute is already under scrutiny by investigators due to the personal relationships of some of its employees with the victims' family circle. A laboratory technician working at the institute is the husband of a friend of Gianni Di Vita, former mayor of Pietracatella and a relative of the victims, both of whom have already been questioned multiple times at the police station.

The case originated last December with the poisoning deaths of 50-year-old Antonella Di Ielsi and her 15-year-old daughter Sara Di Vita in the small municipality of Pietracatella, Molise. Ricin is a lethal toxin extracted from castor bean seeds, which grows wild in the Riccia and Pietracatella area, where it is traditionally used in gardens to keep moles away.

The investigation, coordinated by Larino prosecutor Elvira Antonelli and the Campobasso Flying Squad led by Marco Graziano, ruled out accidental poisoning from the start as the least likely scenario. In the months following the incident, traces of web browsing on platforms considered 'of investigative interest' by unidentified individuals emerged, with targeted searches for words like 'poison' and 'ricin.'

The digital lead materialized with the acquisition of data from devices at educational institutions attended by people connected to the victims. The decision to search the Riccia Agricultural School was formalized on September 28, before rumors circulated about alleged digital traces identified abroad, which were later denied. The goal is to trace the origin of the poison and who sought information on its preparation.